1.0 Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a desalination device and a method for desalinating salted water, such as for example, seawater.
2.0 Related Art
About 97% of the world's water is undrinkable seawater. The remaining 3% of water, freshwater, is the only water in the world that's naturally drinkable. As demand for freshwater increases along with the growing human population, the already precious resource will become even more valuable in the future. Over the years, processes for desalinating seawater have been developed in an effort to tap into that 97% of the world's water that surrounds us seemingly everywhere. So far, the processes have not reached a level of economic efficiency to promote widespread use for desalination. However, this could change if a new desalination process were developed that was so cost effective that it would rival the cost of finding and using freshwater, particularly when freshwater is distant or remote, or difficult to access.
Presently, in general, two basic types of technology are used for desalinating seawater. The first technology is called thermal desalination, and the second technology is called membrane process desalination. Almost all existing desalination processes can be categorized, ultimately, as either thermal or membrane-based. The primary problem with each technology is that it requires large amounts of energy to succeed. For thermal processes, large amounts of heat must be supplied to cause evaporation. Temperatures for these processes can reach 212 degrees Fahrenheit, or higher. For membrane-based processes, large amounts of pressure must be supplied to seawater to screen the dissolved salt out of the water. Pressures for these processes can reach 1,000 pounds per square inch (psi), or higher. Since ambient temperature and pressure are typically 72 degrees Fahrenheit and 14.7 psi, respectively, it becomes evident why so much energy needs to be brought into these systems. The ambient surroundings alone cannot support these processes. A new desalination process supported entirely by ambient temperature and pressure conditions appears to have an inherent advantage in that its energy requirements should be much lower than the energy requirements of other existing processes.